A total of 48.8 million households worldwide will subscribe to Internet Protocol television (IPTV) services from telecom carriers in 2010, according to market research firm Gartner.
Buoyed by new service launches, IPTV subscribers will more than double in 2007, from an expected 6.4 million in 2006 to 13.3 million.
Despite the eight-fold increase in users between 2006 and 2010, Gartner says that carriers will struggle to turn IPTV into a mainstream pay TV distribution platform on par with established cable or satellite services.
Global IPTV revenue for the period will grow from $872 million in 2006 to $13.2 billion by 2010, which is regarded as relatively modest for the industry, according to Elroy Jopling, research director for Gartner’s Consumer Communication Services.
While not a financial panacea, IPTV will help carriers retain customers of their existing voice and broadband services, he said.
By the numbers, Gartner projects global IPTV subscribers 2004-2010 to be:
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 (CAGR)
2010 Total
IPTV subscribers 3.2 6.4 13.3 24.7 36.3 48.8 72.8% Growth (%) 139.4 102.5 108.1 85.5 46.7 34.5
Source: Gartner Dataquest (August 2006)
For an in-depth understanding of Gartner’s view of the IPTV market, see “IPTV a defensive play as telcos position to retain clients, says researcher” in this edition of IPTV Update.
For more information, visit: www.gartner.com.
